Wall Street edges down on big tech worries

Wall Street ended lower on Monday, as investors digested recent quarterly results from Facebook owner Meta Platforms and other megacaps, while Peloton jumped following reports of interest from potential buyers, including Amazon.

Meta Platforms fell 5.1 percent, adding to losses after its bleak forecast last week caused a record plunge in the social media company’s stock market value.

Meta was among the companies that weighed on the S&P 500 more than any other stock, while Nvidia rose 1.7 percent and lifted the index more than any other stock.

Amazon.com rose 0.2 percent after expanding its market capitalisation by around US$190 billion on Friday on the back of blowout earnings.

Peloton Interactive surged almost 21 percent following reports that Amazon and Nike are exploring potential buyout offers for the stationary bike maker.

The S&P 500 remains down more than 5 percent so far in 2022, with investors worried that the US Federal Reserve could raise interest rates faster than expected.

“Buying the dip was a foregone conclusion until 2022. There is no more guaranteed buying on the dip,” said Jake Dolllarhide, chief executive officer of Longbow Asset Management in Tulsa, Oklahoma. “We’re seeing corrections in indexes and individual securities on a daily and weekly basis.”

The Dow Jones Industrial Average remained unchanged to end at 35,091 points, while the S&P 500 lost 0.37 percent to 4,484. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.58 percent to 14,016.

Tyson Foods Inc surged about 17 percent after the meatpacker’s first-quarter profit nearly doubled and surged past estimates on the back of higher prices.

Of 278 companies in the S&P 500 that have posted earnings as of Friday, 78% reported above analysts’ expectations, according to Refinitiv data.

Spirit Airlines jumped 17 percent after it and Frontier Group Holdings unveiled plans to create the fifth-largest US airline in a US$2.9 billion tie-up.

U.S.-listed shares of China’s Alibaba Group fell about 6 percent after it registered an additional 1 billion American depositary shares. (Reuters)